Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said on Wednesday that the state has received more personal protective equipment (PPE) supplies, but has yet to issue a statewide stay-at-home order, as the state's COVID-19 cases broke the 1,500-mark and coronavirus deaths reached 79, mostly elderly.
In a Facebook post late Wednesday, Stitt said Oklahoma's Strategic National Stockpile now consists of 4 million pairs of gloves, 120,000 gowns, 900,000 surgical masks and 110,000 respirators.
Several comments on Stitt's post, however, were critical of his response to the state's ever-increasing COVID-19 case count, which reached 1,524 Wednesday.
There was no change in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Oklahoma panhandle in the past 24 hours, with three in Texas County and one in Beaver County.
Stitt has stopped short of issuing a statewide stay-at-home order, instead only ordering a Safer at Home order for the state's more vulnerable population. Yet despite that order, 63 of the state's 79 deaths from coronavirus include people in the 65 and up category (see chart pictured above).
Stitt did order all Oklahomans to avoid groups of 10 or more people; to avoid eating or drinking at bars, restaurants, and food courts - instead to use drive-thru, pickup, or delivery options; to avoid discretionary travel, gyms, social visits, and shopping trips; and to not visit nursing homes, retirement or long-term care facilities
That order and the Safer at Home order is effective until April 30.
Earlier this week, Stitt announced that there are now 60 drive-thru testing locations, located across the state, including sites in Guymon, Beaver and Laverne.
